It is known in the art to dispense hand care products from a dispenser mounted to a wall or dispenser stand. Dispensers may be conveniently located in building entrances, bathrooms, or lunchrooms providing convenient access to passersby. Many dispensers have reservoirs that are open to the atmosphere. Such reservoirs are easily and inexpensively refilled from bulk soap stored in bottles or jugs. However, studies have shown that over time soap containers open to the atmosphere generate unsanitary bio-films. Soap used from these containers actually deposit germs onto the hands of the user during use. Even after cleaning the reservoir, remediation studies have determined that bio-films regenerate despite using strong oxidizers like bleach.
To overcome the detriments of open top dispensers, the reservoir in certain types of dispensers is not refilled when the system is replenished. These systems receive disposable refill units produced in a sanitary environment. When empty of product, the whole reservoir is replaced along with the accompanying nozzle and pump. Accordingly, every part wetted by soap is disposed of when the dispenser is serviced. This greatly reduces and/or eliminates the germination of bio-films.
Sanitary-sealed dispensers are designed in a variety of ways that best meet the needs of the end user. Some dispensers include an enclosed housing, which protects and obscures access to the replaceable reservoir. Dispensers of this type include structural components that close upon themselves to form the housing. The housing components may latch together and unlock to provide access to the refill unit along with other dispenser components contained therein. Such dispensers are self-contained and may be mounted to a wall or dispenser stand. In counter mounted dispensers, the reservoir of fluid product is remotely stored away from the point of distribution. In these types of systems, the nozzle is incorporated into a faucet mounted proximal to a sink or washbasin. Consequently, the remaining components of the system, including the replaceable reservoir, are stored out of sight typically underneath the counter.
Some dispensers are designed with a manually actuated pump where the user pushes or pulls a lever to dispense a quantity of fluid product into the user's hands. However, this requires direct contact by the user, which may further contribute to the transmission of germs. As an alternative, “Hands-free” dispensers activate automatically without direct contact by the user. For these types of dispensers, the user places their hand underneath the dispenser where a sensor is located. The sensor signals an onboard controller that the user's hands are properly positioned and subsequently the controller dispenses a quantity of fluid.
For any of these types of systems, dispensers often leak product from the end of the nozzle after the dispenser pump has been activated. To deliver product, pressure is generated within the dispenser conduits by the actuation of a pump, which forces the fluid out of the nozzle onto the user's hands. However, in current state-of-the-art systems, pressure in the system is typically not relieved after dispenser actuation. As such, fluid product dribbles from the end of the nozzle. This results in wasted product and moreover contributes to an unsightly washroom setting. What is needed is a dispensing system that cleanly cuts off the stream of dispensed fluid product at the end of the dispensing cycle. The embodiments of the subject invention obviate the aforementioned problems.